On a recent ‘pilgrimage’ to Liddington Hill, Robin Stapleford captured this stunning view of the Sun perfectly positioned above the gap in the hill fort embankment. Jefferies’ sets the same scene so movingly and inspirationally in The Story of My Heart (Chapter 1, paras 3-4 edited). Jefferies wrote:
‘There was an intrenchment on the summit, and going down into the fosse I walked round it slowly to recover breath. On the south-western side there was a spot where the outer bank had partially slipped, leaving a gap. There the view was over a broad plain and enclosed by a perfect amphitheatre of hills. I was utterly alone with the Sun and the Earth. Lying down on the grass, I spoke in my soul to the Earth, the Sun, the air, and the distant sea far beyond sight. I thought of the Earth's firmness—I felt it bear me up: through the grassy couch there came an influence as if I could feel the great Earth speaking to me. Then I addressed the Sun, desiring the soul equivalent of his light and brilliance, his endurance and unwearied race. I turned to the blue heaven over, gazing into its depth, inhaling its exquisite colour and sweetness. The rich blue of the unattainable flower of the sky drew my soul towards it, and there it rested.’
